Simultaneous fastening apparatus for wire spoke wheels

ABSTRACT

A simultaneous fastening apparatus for wire spoke wheels comprises a fixed lower assembly having a ring-shaped spoke inserting part provided with slots into which the spokes of a provisionally assembled wheel are inserted and vertical teeth between the slots, an annular rim-loading part on which the rim of said wheel is loaded, and an axle-supporting part for gripping the lower end of an axle of said wheel, said rim-loading part being disposed beneath the outer periphery of said spokeinserting part, and said axle-supporting part being disposed beneath the center of said rim-loading part and said spokeinserting part. An upper assembly movable in the vertical direction has an annular rim-clamping part provided with a tapered surface along the lower portion of its outer periphery for making contact with the rim of said wheel and a vertical guide surface along the lower portion of its inner periphery for making contact with the outer periphery of said teeth, and an axle-supporting part for gripping the upper end of the axle of said wheel, said supporting part being disposed at the center of said clamping part. Driver devices equal to the number of nipples threadedly mated with the tips of the respective spokes of the wheel are positioned to oppose each of the slats of said lower assembly at its outer peripheral position and are reciprocable in the directions of the spokes of the wheel. First driving means are positioned for reciprocating the upper assembly in the vertical direction; second driving means are positioned for rotating the driver devices in the fastening direction of the nipples with a constant torque; and third driving means are positioned for reciprocating the driver devices in the directions of the spokes.

United States Patent Kazuaki Hasegawa;

Kanzo Kawaguchi Nozaki; Katsuyoshi Yokoyama, all of Tokyo, Japan [21]Appl. No. 889,119

[22] Filed Dec. 30, 1969 [45] Patented Nov. 16, 1971 [73] Assignee JapanBicycle Promotion Institute [72] Inventors Tokyo, Japan [32] PriorityApr. 21, 1969 [33] Japan [3 1 44/35778 [54] SIMULTANEOUS FASTENINGAPPARATUS FOR Primary E.\-aminer-Granville Y, Custer, Jr.Anomeywenderoth, Lind & Ponack ABSTRACT: A simultaneous fasteningapparatus for wire spoke wheels comprises a fixed lower assembly havinga ringshaped spoke inserting part provided with slots into which thespokes of a provisionally assembled wheel are inserted and verticalteeth between the slots, an annular rim-loading part on which the rim ofsaid wheel is loaded, and an axle-supporting part for gripping the lowerend of an axle of said wheel, said rim-loading part being disposedbeneath the outer periphery of said spoke-inserting part, and saidaxle-supporting part being disposed beneath the center of saidrim-loading part and said spoke-inserting part. An upper assemblymovable in the vertical direction has an annular rim-clamping partprovided with a tapered surface along the lower portion of its outerperiphery for making contact with the rim of said wheel and a verticalguide surface along the lower portion of its inner periphery for makingcontact with the outer periphery of said teeth, and an axle-supportingpart for gripping the upper end of the axle of said wheel, saidsupporting part being disposed at the center of said clamping part.Driver devices equal to the number of nipples threadedly mated with thetips of the respective spokes of the wheel are positioned to oppose eachof the slats of said lower assembly at its outer peripheral position andare reciprocable in the directions of the spokes of the wheel. Firstdriving means are positioned for reciprocating the upper assembly in thevertical direction; second driving means are positioned for rotating thedriver devices in the fastening direction of the nipples with a constanttorque; and third driving means are positioned for reciprocating thedriver devices in the directions of the spokes.

PATENTEDuuv 16 I971 SHEET 2 BF 3 FIG. 2

FIG. 4

FIG. 5

KAZUIW HASI'IGAWA, KAN/O NO/AVI 1nd KIX'I'SUYOSHI YUVUYAMA INVENTOR s;

ATTORNEY 1;

PATENTEDNUV 16 197i 3,620,281

SHiET 3 UP 3 INVENTOR S RM, 5 F ,M v 5 mm m AaK mum

0 OS a w E AoU L h w w B ATTORNEY 3 SIMULTANEOUS FASTENING APPARATUS FORWIRE SPOKE WHEELS The present invention relates to a simultaneousfastening apparatus for finally assembling a wire spoke wheel whichconsists of a plurality of spokes, a hub, and a rim.

The wire spoke wheel used in a bicycle or the like, consists of acentrally located hub, a rim positioned along its outer periphery, and aplurality of wire spokes interconnecting the hub and the rim together.Upon assembling these parts in a factory, it is required that while thehub is set at the center position of the rim, the wire spokes having oneof their ends anchored to said hub are interlaced with one another andsimultaneously the other ends of said wire spokes are respectivelypositioned in the spoke holes on the rim, and then nipples arethreadedly mated with these end portions in a loose manner toprovisionally assemble the hub, rim, and wire spokes. Such aprovisionally assembled wheel is then sent to a main fastening process,where said nipples threadedly mated with said the other ends of the wirespokes are finally fastened to integrally couple the hub, the rim andthe plurality of wire spokes.

Thus two processes are necessary before a wire spoke wheel has beencompletely assembled. With regard to the latter main fastening process,an automatic apparatus has been heretofore used which comprises a devicefor simultaneously fastening four of the nipples which are provisionallyretained on the respective spokes. When there are 36 spokes, suchapparatus requires nine separate fastening operations before thefastening of all the nipples has been completed.

Accordingly, in using such apparatus, a great amount of time wasrequired before one complete wheel could be finally fastened, and thusthere was the disadvantage that the efficiency of the operation was low,resulting in increased manufacturing costs.

The present invention has been proposed in view of the above-mentionedbackground of the art, and a principal object of the present inventionis the provision of a novel simultaneous fastening apparatus for wirespoke wheels, which is made simple in structure by carrying out clampingof the rim as well as the relative approach of the two axle-supportingpans by means of a single cylinder.

Another object of the present invention is the provision of a novelsimultaneous fastening apparatus for wire spoke wheels, in which arim-loading part of a lower assembly is formed of various kinds ofannular bodies which are difierent in height and freely replaceable,thus making it possible to bring the centers of the rim openings in theproximity of the axes of the driver shafts by selectively choosing amongthe annular bodies, even if the widths of the rims of the wheels to befastened vary, and in which the outer circumferential surface of therim-clamping portion of the upper assembly is formed as a steeply slopedsurface that becomes smaller in diameter towards its lower end so as tobe inserted into the inside of the rim in a wedgelike manner, wherebyany rim may be removed of its strain in the circumferential directionand made the shape of a true circle.

Still another object of the present invention is the provision of anovel simultaneous fastening apparatus for wire spoke wheels, in whichsupporting means for the driver shaft is constructed of a pair of upperand lower bolts and inner and outer metallic supporting cylinders, andthe height of said driver shaft can be subjected to fine adjustment byturning said pair of upper and lower bolts in either the normal oropposite directions, whereby the axes of said driver shafts can becompletely aligned with each other in the horizontal direction, and alsosaid supporting means can not be damaged, even if used for a long periodof time, because it is made of metal as described above.

Yet another object of the present invention is the provision of a novelsimultaneous fastening apparatus for wire spoke wheels, in which asimplified safety device is constructed of an electromagnetic valve anda limit switch.

In order to achieve the aforementioned respective objects, the presentinvention is characterized in that said simultaneous fastening apparatuscomprises a fixed lower assembly having a ring-shaped spoke-insertingpart provided with slots into which the spokes of a provisionallyassembled wheel are inserted and vertical teeth formed between theslots, an annular rim-loading part on which the rim of said wheel isloaded, and an axle-supporting part for gripping the lower end of anaxle of said wheel. The rim-loading part is disposed beneath the outerperiphery of the spoke-inserting part, and the axle-supporting part isdisposed beneath the center of the rim-loading part and thespoke-inserting part. An upper assembly, movable in the verticaldirection has an annular rim-clamping part provided with a taperedsurface along the lower portion of its outer periphery for makingcontact with the rim of the wheel loaded on the rim-loading part and avertical guide surface along the lower portion of its inner peripheryfor making contact with the outer periphery of the teeth, and anaxle-supporting part for gripping the upper end of the axle of the wheelthe supporting part is disposed at the center of the clamping part.Driver devices, equaling the number of nipples threadedly mated with thetips of the respective spokes of the wheel, each oppose one of the slotsof the lower assembly at the outer peripheral position thereof andreciprocate in the direction of the spokes of the wheel. A first drivingmeans is positioned for reciprocating the upper assembly in the verticaldirection; a second driving means is positioned for rotating each driverdevice to fasten the nipples with a constant torque; and a third drivingmeans is positioned for reciprocating the driver devices in thedirections of the spokes.

Due to the fact that in the apparatus according to the presentinvention, the number of driver devices equal the number of nipplesthreadedly mated with the tips of the respective spokes of theprovisionally assembled wheel and each driver device is opposed to aslot of the lower assembly and is free to reciprocate in the directionof the spoke of the wheel; when the driver devices are operated by thesecond driving means, all the nipples on the provisionally assembledwheel clamped between the upper and lower assemblies are simultaneouslyfastened. Thus the operation efficiency can be extremely enhanced incomparison with prior an apparatus in which the same operation must berepeated many times.

In addition, due to the fact that the simultaneous apparatus accordingto the present invention includes an assembly movable in the verticaldirection and having an annular rimclamping part provided with a taperedsurface along the lower portion of its outer periphery for makingcontact with the rim of the wheel, a vertical guide surface along thelower portion of its inner periphery for making contact with the outerperiphery of the teeth, and an axle supporting part for gripping theupper end of the axle of the wheel, after the provisionally assembledwheel has been placed on the lower assembly with the spokes insertedinto the respective slots with the lower end of the axle inserted intothe axle-supporting part and the rim loaded on the rim-loading part,when the first driving means is actuated to lower the upper assembly,that is, the rim-clamping part and the axle-supporting part, then thetapered surface provided along the lower portion of the outer peripheryof the clamping part cooperates with the rim-loading part of the lowerassembly so as to clamp the rim in an exactly circular shape. Inaddition, the axle-supporting part of the upper assembly cooperates withthe axle-supporting part of the lower assembly so as to grip the upperand lower end portions of the axle, whereby the rim and the axle arecompletely affixed. Also, when the vertical inner peripheral surface ofthe rimclamping part and the vertical outer surface of the teeth of thelower assembly make contact with each other, a perfect alignment of theaxes of the respective axle-supporting parts results, and the entirerim-clamping part becomes perpendicular to these axes, whereby the rimand the axle can occupy their regular positions when affixed. Further,when the second and third driving means are actuated, the driver devicesmove forwardly to engage with the nipples and rotate them with aconstant torque, so that the respective nipples may be threaded equally.Since the rim and the axle can be set at their regular positions and therespective nipples can be equally threaded it' is possible to fasten theprovisionally assembled wheel accurately, thereby greatly reducingoperational longitudinal and lateral vibrations.

Still further, according to the present invention, since the positioningof the rim and axle as well as the fastening of the nipples are carriedout automatically and the operator is required only to load theprovisionally assembled wheel on the lower assembly and to remove thefinally fastened wheel from the lower assembly, an advantageous featureresults in that the operational procedure is simplified and thus arelatively inexperienced operator can easily operate the apparatus.

Other features and advantages of the invention will become more apparentfrom the following description of a preferred embodiment taken inconjunction with the accompanying drawings, in which:

FIG. I is a plan view showing a preferred embodiment of the simultaneousfastening apparatus for wire spoke wheels according to the presentinvention,

FIG. 2 is a side view showing a longitudinal cross section taken alongline lI-Il in FIG. 1,

FIG. 3 is a longitudinal cross section side view showing anaxle-supporting part provided in the upper and lower assemblies in anenlarged scale,

FIG. 4 is a bottom view of the axle-supporting part provided in theupper assembly,

FIG. 5 is a plan view of the axle-supporting part provided in the lowerassembly,

FIG. 6 is a longitudinal cross section side view showing a driver deviceand driving means therefor,

FIG. 7 is a plan view of said driver device, and

FIG. 8 is a front view showing the tip portion of said driver device.

The present invention will be described in more detail hereinafter withreference to the preferred embodiment illustrated in FIGS. 1 to 8. Theentire apparatus consists of a lower assembly A, an upper assembly B,first driving means C for said upper assembly, driver devices D, andsecond and third driving means E, F for said driver devices.

At first, description will be made with reference to the lower assemblyA. Reference numeral 1 indicates a supporting frame formed in a shortcylindrical shape and having a diameter which is somewhat smaller thanthe diameter of a rim r, and numeral 2 indicates a base stand having anoutwardly projecting flangelike mounting table 3, said frame body 1being fixedly secured to the top of said base stand 2. Numeral 4indicates slots provided at equal intervals at the top of said framebody I, the number of which is equal to the number of spokes s, that is.equal to 36 in the case of the illustrated apparatus. Numeral 5indicates teeth formed between the slots, and the number of the teeth isequal to that of said slots 4. Their respective outer peripheralsurfaces are cut out precisely in the vertical direction. The supportingframe I is formed in a cylindrical shape, whereby when the slots andteeth are formed as described above, the surface connecting the outerperipheral surfaces of the respective teeth 5 coincides with oneimaginary cylindrical surface centered at the axis of the supportingframe I. Numeral 6 indicates an annular rim-loading part disposed alongthe outer peripheral surface of the supporting frame 1 beneath saidslots 4 and said teeth 5, and numeral 7 indicates an axle-supportingpart disposed at the center of the bottom portion la of the supportingframe 1. In the case of the illustrated embodiment, a collet chuck asshown in FIGS. 3 and 5 is used in the axle-supporting part 7. Explainingthis collet chuck with reference to FIGS. 3 and 5, it consists of anouter cylinder 1 1 having its inner surface flared at the top andadapted to be threadedly mated with said bottom portion la, and an innercylinder 13 adapted to be fitted into said outer cylinder and having itsouter surface flared at the top and provided with longitudinal splitslots 12. When the lower end of the axle a is depressed into the innercylinder 13 through an operation as described later, said inner cylinder13 also shifis downwardly to a certain extent within the outer cylinder1 1 together with the axle a, so that the upper portion of the innercylinder 13 is contracted to grip the lower end portion of the axle a.If this depressing force is released. the upper portion of the innercylinder 13 which has been 'contracted, will expand by its own resilientforce, and will release the gripped lower end of the axle a as it movesupwardly within the outer cylinder 11. Since the axle-supporting part 7may be shifted as a whole in the vertical direction by loosening a nut14 and turning the outer cylinder 11, the mounting position isadjustable.

Now description will be made of the upper assembly B and the firstdriving means therefor. Numeral 15 indicates three struts studded atthree symmetrical positions along the circumference of said base stand2, numeral 16 indicates a hydraulic cylinder disposed above saidaxle-supporting part 7, and these struts l5 and hydraulic cylinder 16are integrally coupled by means of three beam members 17. Numeral 18indicates a piston of said hydraulic cylinder 16, and numeral 19indicates a piston rod integrally coupled to said piston 18, hav ing itsaxis aligned with the axis of said supporting frame 1 and its lower endpositioned above said axle-supporting part 7. N umeral 20 indicates anannular rim-clamping part, the inner peripheral surface of which isslidable along the outer peripheral surface of said teeth 5. and on thelower portion along the outer peripheral surface of said rim-clampingpart is provided a tapered portion 21 which makes contact with the upperinner periphery of the rim r when it is loaded on said rim-loading part6, that is, a tapered portion 2] having its outer diameter reduceddownwardly. Said rim-clamping part 20 and said piston rod 19 areintegrally coupled by means of a plurality of arms 22. Numeral 23indicates another axle-supporting part mounted at the lower end of saidpiston rod 19. A collet chuck (as shown in FIGS. 3 and 4) consists of apiston 24 which is movable in the vertical direction along the axis ofsaid piston rod 19, and an inner cylinder 26 which has split slots 25and is movable in the vertical direction along said axis within saidpiston 24. The vertical movement of said piston and said inner cylinder26 is carried out in relation to the vertical movement of said piston18, said piston rod 19 and said rim-clamping part 20. When a pushbuttonswitch, not shown, is depressed to shift an electromagnetic valve to oneposition and thereby pressurized oil from a hydraulic pump (not shown)is fed to an inlet port 27a provided at the upper end of said cylinder16, the pressurized oil is passed through an oil path 19a to an oil path19b, resulting in a predetermined amount of descent of the piston 24.Then also the piston 18, piston rod 19 and rim-clamping part 20 begin todescend, and from the midway of the descent the rim-clamping part 20lowers along the vertical outer periphery of the respective teeth 5until the tapered portion 21 of the rim-clamping part 20 is insertedalong the upper inner periphery of the rim r in a wedgelike manner andthus clamps the rim r in an exactly circular shape. Also at this step ofoperation, the lower end of the inner cylinder 26 abuts against theupper end of the axle a and thereby allows the upper end portion of theaxle a to enter the inner cylinder to a certain extent, andsimultaneously the entire axle a is depressed downwardly, so that insaid axle-supporting part 7 the aforementioned operation is carried out,and in said axle-supporting part 23 the inner cylinder 26 retreatsupwardly to a certain extent due to the reaction force, resulting incontraction of the lower end portion of the inner cylinder 26 to gripthe upper end of axle a. In addition, in order to avert the danger upondescent, said upper assembly B is provided with the following means.That is, said pushbutton switch, not shown, is provided in duplicate,and unless these switches are depressed together by means of the bothhands, said oil path switching electromagnetic valve, not shown, cannotbe shifted to said one position, and consequently, the oil pathextending from a hydraulic motor to the inlet port 27a of the cylinder26 cannot be opened. When the rim-clamping part 20 has completed itsdescent as described above and allows a microswitch 29 to make contactwith an enlarged diameter portion 19c of the piston rod 19, theelectromagnetic valve is maintained to said one position, whereby thepressured oil is continuously fed to the inlet port 27a. Therefore,prior to attainment of the above-mentioned state, if either one or bothhands are removed from the pushbutton switch, then the electromagneticvalve will automatically return to the other position to feed thepressured oil to the other inlet port 27b of the cylinder 16, resultingin automatic ascent of the upper assembly B, and therefore, there is norisk that the operator may have his hands clamped between the lowerassembly A or the rim r and the rimclamping part 20. In the illustratedapparatus, the axle-supporting part 23 including the lower portion ofthe piston rod 19, the arms 22 and the rimclamping part in combinationcorrespond to said upper assembly B, while the piston rod 19, the piston18 and the cylinder 16 correspond to said first driving means C for saidupper assembly 8.

Now description will be given with respect to the driver devices D andthe second and third driving means E and F. Numeral 30 indicates ahydraulic cylinder fixedly secured to said mounting table 3. As manycylinders 30 are provided as there are spokes s (in the case of theillustrated apparatus, 36). Numeral 31 indicates a support bracketslidably mounted at the top of said respective cylinders 30, and to thelower end of said support bracket 31 is fixedly secured a piston rod 57.The directions of sliding motion of these support brackets 31 are theradial directions of the supporting frame 1, each passing through thecenter of the corresponding slot 4. Numeral 32 indicates a support outercylinder having its lower portion 320 inserted into said support bracket31 and fixed in position by means of a nut 33 and a clamping bolt 34,and from its upper and lower sides towards its inside are projected thetips of bolts 35 and 36. Numeral 37 indicates a support inner cylinderhaving an outer diameter smaller than the inner diameter of said supportouter cylinder 32, its rear half portion being positioned within thesupport outer cylinder 32, and the upper and lower sides of the centerportion are rotatably supported by means of said bolts 35 and 36.Therefore, the support inner cylinder 37 is rotatable in a horizontalplane within the limited swing allowed by the clearance between the twocylinders. in addition, if a gap is provided between the tip portions ofbolts 35, 36 and the support inner cylinder 37, then the support innercylinder 37 also is rotatable in vertical and/or oblique directions andthus the nipple-catching operation as described later is facilitated.Numeral 39 indicates a driver shaft which is supported within thesupport inner cylinder 37 by means of bearings 40, 41 so as to inhibitthe shift of its axial direction. At one end of the driver shaft ismounted a driver 42 and at the other end is fixedly secured a bevel gear43. Numerals 44, 45 indicate spacers, and numeral 46 indicates a thrustbearing. Numeral 47 indicates a metallic member for holding the head ofthe nipple n, and includes a flat front portion 470 and a cylindricalrear portion 47b, the front portion 470 is provided with an openinghaving a diameter somewhat larger than that of the head of the nippleand the rear portion 47b being provided with an opening 49 having adiameter somewhat larger than that of said driver shaft 39. Rear portion47b is fitted into the space between said support inner cylinder 37 anddriver shaft 39, and between said rear portion 47b and said bearing 40is inserted a spring 50. Therefore, metallic member 47 is normallypushed forward until the rear portion 47b bears against a stopper 51which is fixedly secured to the tip of the support inner cylinder 37.Numeral 52 indicates torque motors mounted on base stand 2. One torquemotor is provided for each nipple n (in the illustrated apparatus 36),and are automatically stopped when a predetermined maximum load isapplied, and automatically restarted when the load is removed. Therotational torque required for fastening the nipple can be obtained byadjusting the output voltage of a slide transformer. Numeral 53indicates an output shaft of one torque motor 52, and is coupled withdriver shaft 39 by the intermediary of a bevel gear 54 which meshes withbevel gear 43 and a flexible coupling shaft 55. in the illustratedapparatus, the driver 42, the driver shaft 39, the inner and outersupport cylinders 37 and 32, respectively, the metallic member 47, etc.correspond to said driver devices D; the hydraulic cylinder 30, thesupport bracket 31, and the piston rod 57, etc. correspond to saidsecond driving means E; and the torque motor 52, the coupling shaft 55,etc. correspond to said third driving means F.

in operation of the illustrated fastening apparatus, at first, thehydraulic pump (not shown) for feeding pressurized oil to the cylinders16 and 30 and the torque motor 52 are made to be ready for starting.Then a provisionally assembled wheel consisting of an axle a, spokes s,and a rim r and nipples n, is placed on the lower assembly A. At thistime, the lower end of the axle a is put on the axle-supporting portion7, the rim r is placed on the rim-loading part 6, and the respectivespokes s are inserted into the corresponding slots 4. Then the twopushbutton switches are depressed together to shift the electromagneticvalve to said one position and thus feed the pressured oil from saidhydraulic pump to the inlet port 270 of the cylinder 16. As a result,the piston 24 descends for a predetermined distance, and as the entireupper assembly B continues to descend, the inner peripheral surface ofthe rim-clamping part 20 makes contact with the outer peripheral surfaceof the teeth 5, and finally the tapered portion 21 is fitted along theupper inner periphery of the rim r in a wedgelike manner to clamp therim r in an exactly circular shape together with the rim-loading part 6.Also, simultaneously therewith, the inner cylinder 26 of theaxle-supporting part 23 abuts against the upper end of the axle a toallow the axle a to enter the inner cylinder 26, and simultaneouslydepresses the axle u downwardly to insert the lower end of the axle ainto the inner cylinder 13. In this way, the rim r and the axle a arefixed in position, and since the enlarged diameter portion 19c of thepiston rod 19 then makes contact with the microswitch 29 and thus itoperates, said electromagnetic valve will maintain said one position.Therefore, even if the both hands are removed from said switch, theupper assembly B will not ascend and the relationship between the rim rand the axle a is maintained. Then, another pushbutton switch separatefrom said two pushbutton switches is depressed to shift anotherelectromagnetic valve to a position to feed pressurized oil from saidhydraulic pump to inlet ports 30a of the respective cylinders 30. As aresult, the piston rods 57 advance, and each rotating driver shaft 39 isadvanced towards each nipple n of the provisionally assembled wheel bythe intennediary of the support bracket 31 and the inner and outersupport cylinders 37 and 32, respectively. Due to this advancement, atfirst the flat portion 470 of the metallic member 47 arrives at theposition of the nipple n and encompasses the head of the nipple withinthe opening 48. But in the next step, since the flat portion 470 abutsagainst the rim r, the metallic member 47 is unable to advance further.However, the driver shaft 39 still continues to advance by theintennediary of the support bracket 31 and the inner and outer supportcylinders 37 and 32, respectively. Thus the tip of the driver shaft 39engages the slot on the nipple n to rotate the nipple n encompassedwithin said opening 48 in the thread-in direction for fastening thesame. In this connection, since a piston 56 which is integrally coupledto the piston rod 57 has not yet abutted against an end plate 58, thedriver shaft 39 continues to be advanced. When the fastening of thenipple proceeds and the load has reached a predetermined value, therespective torque motors 52 stop rotation automatically.

Also under such a condition, a timer (not shown) is actuated to shiftsaid two electromagnetic valves to the other positions, respectively.Accordingly, pressurized oil is fed to the inlet port 27b in the regionof the cylinder 16, and to the inlet port 30b in the region of thecylinder 30, and thus the upper assembly B ascends and the driverdevices D retreat to their home positions, respectively. In addition,when the upper assembly B begins to ascend as described above, the feedof the pressurized oil to the piston 24 is stopped, so that the innercylinder 26 moves downwardly to a certain extent and the inner cylinder13 moves upwardly to a certain extent due to their own resilient force,and thereby their tip portions are expanded into the original shape.Consequently, the axle a is released. Also when the driver devices beginto retreat as described above, the tip of each driver shaft 39 isdisengaged from each nipple n, so that the torque motor 52 and thedriver shaft 39 may again start rotation. This rotation continueswithout interruption during the period when the driver shaft 39 retreatsto its home position and later again advances for fastening the nippleas described above.

As described, by actuating cylinder 16, the gripping of the upper andlower ends of the axle as well as the clamping of the rim may beachieved simultaneously. Since only one cylinder is needed to operatethis apparatus, the structure thereof is simplified.

In addition, inasmuch as the driver shaft 39 is supported in such mannerthat it can be swiveled along a horizontal plane about the bolts 35 and36 and also that adjustment in the vertical direction may be achieved byrotating said bolts 35 and 36, it is possible to accurately align theaxes of the nipples and the spokes and the axes of the driver shafts 39,and thereby the capturing and fastening of the nipples may be achievedsmoothly.

Still further, the rim-loading part 6 is freely attached to or detachedfrom the lower assembly A. Thus, by'choosing a suitable one among anumber of rim-loading parts 6 having different heights, it is possibleto bring the center of the rim opening in the proximity of the axis ofthe driver shaft. In other words, according to the present invention,with the replacement of the rim-loading parts 6 and the fine adjustmentby means of the bolts 35 and 36, the axes of the nipples and the spokesand the axes of the driver shafts 39 can be completely aligned. inaddition, due to the fact that the outer circumferential surface of therim-clamping part 20 is provided with a steeply tapered portion 21having a larger diameter at its upper end than the outer diameter of therim and a smaller diameter at its lower end than the inner diameter ofthe rim, and said tapered portion 21 is adapted to be inserted into theinside of the rim placed on the rim-loading part 6 in a wedgelikemanner; even if the rim should have a strain in the circumferentialdirection, the rim will be formed into a true circle, whereby the wheelafter fastened will not cause vertical vibration upon rolling.

Also, the structure of the apparatus according to the present inventionis simpler, because the-oil path on the side of the inlet 27a of saidcylinder 16 is controlled by the electromagnetic valve which is closedwhen the pushbutton switch is released, and because when the upperassembly B has been fully lowered and the microswitch 29 is actuated bythe larger diameter part 19c provided at the top of the piston rod 19,said electromagnetic valve remains in the opened position and therebythe feeding of pressurized oil from the inlet 27a to the cylinder 16 maybe continued.

While the present invention has been described above with reference to apreferred embodiment, it is intended that the present invention shouldnot be limited only to the embodiment, but various changes in designcould be made within the scope of the invention without departing fromthe spirit of the invention.

What is claimed is:

1. An apparatus for simultaneously fastening the spokes of a wire spokewheel, said apparatus comprising a lower assembly fixed in position andincluding an annular spoke inserting part having slots therein intowhich the spokes of a provisionally assembled wheel may be inserted andvertical teeth between said slots, an annular rim-loading meanspositioned outwardly and below said spoke-inserting part for supportingthe rim of said provisionally assembled wheel, and a loweraxle-supporting means positioned centrally said spoke-inserting part andsaid rim-loading means and including a first collet chuck for grippingthe lower portion of the axle of said provisionally assembled wheel; anupper assembl mounted for vertical movement toward and away from saidower assembly and including an upper axle supporting means, the verticalaxis of which corresponds to the vertical axis of said loweraxle-supporting means and including a second collet chuck for grippingthe upper portion of the axle of said provisionally assembled wheel,said second collet chuck including an internally mounted pistonvertically movable with respect to said upper axle-supporting means, andan annular rim-clamping means positioned coaxially without said upperaxle-supporting means and having an inner vertical peripheral surfacedimensioned to be guided by the outer surfaces of said teeth when saidupper assembly is moved toward said lower assembly for gripping saidrim-supported on said rim-loading means; first means for driving saidupper assembly in said vertical movement and including a fixed cylindermounted above slid upper assembly, the axis of said fixed cylindercorresponding to said axis of said upper and lower axle-supportingmeans, a piston rod mounted for vertical movement within said fixedcylinder, the lower end of said piston rod forming a portion of saidupper axlesupporting means, said piston of said second collet chuckbeing vertically movable within said lower end of said piston rod, aflow passage within said piston rod communicating from the interior ofsaid fixed cylinder to the top of said piston, first fluid supply meansfor supplying fluid to said fixed cylinder for lowering said piston rodwith respect to said fixed cylinder and lowering said piston withrespect to said piston rod, and second fluid supply means for supplyingfluid to said fixed cylinder for raising said piston rod and saidpiston; a plurality of driver means, one of said driver means opposingeach of said slots, for simultaneously tightening a nipple onto each ofsaid spokes, each of said driver means including an outer supportcylinder, an inner support cylinder positioned within said outer supportcylinder, and a rotatable driver shafi mounted within said inner supportcylinder, the outer end of said driver shaft having thereon means forengaging said nipple; a plurality of second means mounted for drivingeach of said driver means in the axial direction of their respectivespokes; and a plurality of third means mounted for rotating each of saiddriver shafts of said driver means.

2. An apparatus as claimed in claim 1, wherein each of said driver meansfurther comprises a pair of bolts vertically mounting said inner supportcylinder within said outer support member, said inner support memberthereby being limitingly rotatable in a horizontal plane around saidbolts, said bolts being vertically movable whereby the vertical positionof said inner support cylinder with respect to said outer supportcylinder is adjustable.

3. An apparatus as claimed in claim 1, wherein said rimloading means isdetachably mounted on said lower assembly and has a horizontalrim-loading surface; and said rim-clamping means has a steeply taperedouter circumferential surface such that the outer diameter at its upperend is greater than the outer diameter of said rim, and the outerdiameter at its lower end is less than the inner diameter of said rim;whereby when said upper assembly is lowered, said tapered surface isadapted to contact the inner edge of said rim in a wedgelike manner tothereby uniformly expand said rim into a true circle.

4. An apparatus as claimed in claim I, wherein the upper end of saidpiston rod extends through said fixed cylinder and has an enlargedportion thereon, and further comprising microswitch means mounted to beopened by said enlarged portion when said upper assembly is fullylowered for maintaining fluid supply to said first fluid supply means.

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1. An apparatus for simultaneously fastening the spokes of a wire spokewheel, said apparatus comprising a lower assembly fixed in position andincluding an annular spoke inserting part having slots therein intowhich the spokes of a provisionally assembled wheel may be inserted andvertical teeth between said slots, an annular rim-loading meanspositioned outwardly and below said spoke-inserting part for supportingthe rim of said provisionally assembled wheel, and a loweraxle-supporting means positioned centrally of said spoke-inserting partand said rimloading means and including a first collet chuck forgripping the lower portion of the axle of said provisionally assembledwheel; an upper assembly mounted for vertical movement toward and awayfrom said lower assembly and including an upper axle supporting means,the vertical axis of which corresponds to the vertical axis of saidlower axle-supporting means and including a second collet chuck forgripping the upper portion of the axle of said provisionally assembledwheel, said second collet chuck including an internally mounted pistonvertically movable with respect to said upper axle-supporting means, andan annular rim-clamping means positioned coaxially without said upperaxle-supporting means and having an inner vertical peripheral surfacedimensioned to be guided by the outer surfaces of said teeth when saidupper assembly is moved toward said lower assembly for gripping saidrim-supported on said rim-loading means; first means for driving saidupper assembly in said vertical movement and including a fixed cylindermounted above said upper assembly, the axis of said fixed cylindercorresponding to said axis of said upper and lower axle-supportingmeans, a piston rod mounted for vertical movement within said fixedcylinder, the lower end of said piston rod forming a portion of saidupper axle-supporting means, said piston of said second collet chuckbeing vertically movable within said lower end of said piston rod, aflow passage within said piston rod communicating from the interior ofsaid fixed cylinder to the top of said piston, first fluid supply meansfor supplying fluid to said fixed cylinder for lowering said piston rodwith respect to said fixed cylinder and lowering said piston withrespect to said piston rod, and second fluid supply means for supplyingfluid to said fixed cylinder for raising said piston rod and saidpiston; a plurality of driver means, one of said driver means opposingeach of said slots, for simultaneously tightening a nipple onto each ofsaid spokes, each of said driver means including an outer supportcylinder, an inner support cylinder positioned within said outer supportcylinder, and a rotatable driver shaft mounted within said inner supportcylinder, the outer end of said driver shaft having thereon means forengaging said nipple; a plurality of second means mounted for drivingeach of said driver means in the axial direction of their respectivespokes; and a plurality of third means mounted for rotating each of saiddriver shafts of said driver means.
 2. An apparatus as claimed in claim1, wherein each of said driver means further comprises a pair of boltsvertically mounting said inner support cylinder within said outersupport member, said inner support member thereby being limitinglyrotatable in a horizontal plane around said bolts, said bolts beingvertically movable whereby the vertical position of said inner supportcylinder with respect to said outer support cylinder is adjustable. 3.An apparatus as claimed in claim 1, wherein said rim-loading means isdetachably mounted on said lower assembly and has a horizontalrim-loading surface; and said rim-clamping means has a steeply taperedouter circumferential surface such that the outer diameter at its upperend is greater than the outer diameter of said rim, and the outerdiameter at its lower end is less than the inner diameter of sAid rim;whereby when said upper assembly is lowered, said tapered surface isadapted to contact the inner edge of said rim in a wedgelike manner tothereby uniformly expand said rim into a true circle.
 4. An apparatus asclaimed in claim 1, wherein the upper end of said piston rod extendsthrough said fixed cylinder and has an enlarged portion thereon, andfurther comprising microswitch means mounted to be opened by saidenlarged portion when said upper assembly is fully lowered formaintaining fluid supply to said first fluid supply means.